Makinde campaign group calls Tinubu ‘modern-day Pharaoh,’

The Makinde-Daura Presidential Campaign Organization (MDPCO) has described President Bola Tinubu as a “modern-day Pharaoh,” accusing his administration of worsening Nigerians’ hardship and insisting that he cannot lead the country to a better future.

The organisation made the remarks in a statement on Wednesday signed by Richard Ihediwa, the organisation’s director of strategic communications, reacting to Mr Tinubu’s recent reference to Egypt while ruling out a return to fuel subsidy.

“Of course, Pharaoh cannot lead to a Promised Land,” the statement read.

Mr Ihediwa accused the president of failing to respond adequately to Nigerians’ suffering, arguing that his policies had increased the economic burden on citizens.

“President Tinubu’s hardness of heart and refusal/failure to heed the wailing of suffering Nigerians shows that, like Pharaoh, he appears to relish the sight of citizens struggling in grinding poverty and misery,” the statement quoted the campaign group.

The campaign organisation, which is championing the presidential bid of Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde and his Lawal Daura ahead of the 2027 election, also accused the administration of weakening democratic institutions, restricting accountability and failing to address insecurity.

Performance assessment

It said rising food prices, transport fares and rents had made life increasingly difficult for households, while declining purchasing power and unemployment had deepened economic uncertainty.

The group also criticised the federal government’s education policies, particularly higher tuition fees in tertiary institutions and the reliance on student loans, arguing that these measures had made education less accessible to poorer Nigerians.

On security, the organisation accused the administration of failing to adequately protect communities, schools, places of worship and highways from attacks by bandits, terrorists and kidnappers.

The group said Mr Tinubu’s reference to a promised land was at odds with what it described as the hardship confronting Nigerians.

“Nigerians are too famished to gird their loins for a journey that lead to nowhere,” Mr Ihediwa said. “They know that his ‘promise land’ is a wilderness of hunger, hardship, hopelessness and uncertainty.”

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The organisation presented Mr Makinde as an alternative, saying his proposed Reset Nigeria agenda offered a plan for national renewal ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Mr Makinde, who is running for the presidency on the platform of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), is seeking to challenge Mr Tinubu, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, in the election.

The campaign organisation said the proposed agenda prioritised inclusive governance, transparency, accountability, improved security, economic productivity and a more efficient public service.